Sushil Kumar’s Phoenix-like rise exposes wrestling’s sorry story

Indian wrestling would have remained a story of highs and lows had it not been for two-time Olympic medallist Sushil Kumar’s Phoenix-like rise, which gave a actuality examine to a sport that hasn’t moved a lot since his sudden exit from the scene three years in the past.

Wrestling have accounted for medals on the Olympics since 2008 Beijing Video games, however general it has didn’t lived as much as the hype it as soon as created, and it was evident in 2017.

Regardless of profitable various medals, Indians had been discovered wanting on many events with none coming near the category of Sushil or Yogeshwar Dutt, and even Rio Olympics bronze medallist Sakshi Malik didn’t up the glamour quotient together with her inconsistent performances.

For a 34-year-old, making a comeback was a troublesome job, however Sushil hardly confronted any such menace on the best way to profitable a gold on the Commonwealth Wrestling Championship.

He confirmed class is everlasting, and that the children nonetheless have a protracted method to go, a minimum of in his weight class — males’s 74kg freestyle.

Out of motion for the reason that 2014 Commonwealth Video games in Glasgow, few anticipated Sushil’s return to the sporting enviornment, particularly given the circumstances that compelled him into oblivion.

What began as a mere harm, which deterred him from collaborating within the 2015 choice trials for World Championships that additionally posed as Rio Olympic qualifiers, went on take surprising turns.

From getting a royal snub from the Wrestling Federation of India and Delhi Excessive Court docket, which price him an opportunity to take part within the Olympics final 12 months, to allegations of spiking drinks of a fellow wrestler who certified for the Rio Video games in his weight division, the nation’s most adorned Olympian confronted all of it.

As well as, his administrative tasks and appointment as a nationwide observer virtually sealed his destiny as an athlete, however his inclination to compete obtained the higher of him and Sushil introduced his resolution to return to the mat on the Nationwide championship final month in Indore.

He later additionally resigned because the nationwide observer, making his intentions of continuous as a sportsperson clear.

His fairy-tale return, nonetheless, become an anti-climax with three of his opponents, out of 5, conceding their bouts as “a mark of respect”, handing him a gold medal on a platter and making it appear to be a farce.

His rivals might need executed it out of reverence, however it actually robbed Sushil an opportunity of staking his declare on the medal in a means that he deserved and wished.

Though he did handle to offer a glimpse of what he’s nonetheless able to in a few preliminary spherical bouts that he wrapped off in lower than three minutes, earlier than receiving the surprising walkovers in quarters, semis and the ultimate.

Nevertheless, Sushil didn’t have to attend lengthy earlier than displaying his mettle, as he bagged a gold on his personal advantage on the recently-concluded Commonwealth Wrestling Championships in Johannesburg.

Regardless that he confronted simply 5 rivals in his weight class, he defeated all of them en path to his yellow steel.

One in all them was compatriot Praveen Rana, who had by the way given Sushil a walkover within the title conflict at Indore. However the two battled out this time, and it was the veteran grappler, who got here out on prime with a 5-Four victory.

It gave Sushil what he craved for for the reason that Nationals, however that actually didn’t paint a really vibrant image of Indian wrestling.

The truth that Rana has been India’s prime grappler in 74kg class after Sushil and Narsingh Yadav’s exit from the scene, now proved that the game within the nation has not made a major transfer.

Not simply in 74kg, the Indians didn’t make a mark on the World Championships in August throughout all three classes — males, girls and Greco-Roman. They returned empty-handed from the mega-event with none of them making it to even the medal rounds, regardless of the contingent boasting names like Sakshi and Asian champion Bajrang Punia.

This was an entire distinction to their dominating present on the Asian Championships in Could, when hosts India had put up their best-ever efficiency by clinching 10 medals, together with a gold in New Delhi.

However their failure to duplicate it on the Paris World Championships in an area of a few months uncovered many flaws and the necessity to bridge the hole on the highest stage.

Within the later a part of the 12 months, although, they made amends with Bajrang, Vinod Omprakash and Ritu Phogat returning with three silver medals for the primary time from U-23 World Championships, held in Bydgoszcz, Poland.

On the recently-concluded Commonwealth Wrestling, India gained medals throughout three classes, however that was not sufficient to authenticate their standing on the world stage, given the usual of competitors there.

Nonetheless, Indian grapplers undoubtedly confirmed potential and with the skilled Sushil again in motion, they’re sure to offer a a lot better account of themselves at subsequent 12 months’s Commonwealth and Asian Video games.